In line with the development and delivery of a Risk Management System for Customs and OGAs under the Strengthening of the Trinidad and Tobago Electronic Single Window, On November 7-8, TTEK delivered a comprehensive 2-day Customs focused risk management workshop, designed exclusively for Customs practitioners.

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has never intended to open source ASYCUDA (as the WCO recently did in June 2017 with their Cargo Targeting System). It seems clear that Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs) should not be in the business of building and selling rudimentary software solutions, and donors should not be funding the development or deployment especially when there is an appearance of a kickback scheme for a select few...

In the last chapter, we discussed the findings of the UN Audits on ASYCUDA and UNCTAD in 2008 and 2012. In this chapter, we discuss the plans UNCTAD had for ASYCUDA and why they never actually emerged.

As requested by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) in 2008, UNCTAD/ASYCUDA was asked to develop a strategy in regards to the development and roll-out of the next generation of ASYCUDA World branded as “ASYCUDA Millennium”...

We’ve prepared a series of upcoming posts over the next 1-2 weeks regarding ASYCUDA that might draw some interest and discussion. A few months ago, I had posted a blog on ASYCUDA called: “The ASYCUDA Myth Part 1: Is UNCTAD fostering a No-Bid Sole Source Contract for ASYCUDA World?” This post can be accessed here and discussed the various tactics employed by UNCTAD to secure a sole source deployment of ASYCUDA under the guise of a misleading feasibility study.

The next in the series (posted here today) is called, “The ASYCUDA Myth Part 2: United Nations Audit Reveals Collusion, and Conflicts of Interest”, and is based on the United Nations Office of Internal Oversight services (OIOS) audits in 2008 and 2012. Surprisingly, many in our community are still unaware of these reports and the internal conflicts they exposed. Personally, I only discovered them in the last year. If you are in anyway involved in trade facilitation, customs modernization, and/or capacity building in the developing world, it is very important to understand the specifics of ASYCUDA development to date and where this system is likely headed.

This blog will be followed by 2 more blogs in the next 2 weeks called,

“The ASYCUDA Myth Part 3: Where is ASYCUDA Millennium?”

and ;

“The ASYCUDA Myth Part 4: Time to Open Source.”

I hope these blogs are enjoyed and prompt much discussion to make the positive change that is desperately needed.

I'll be honest. I'm intrigued but I'm still not entirely clear on how this can be used to enhance supply chain visibility for Customs and border processing. It's also not entirely clear yet how the trading community wants to implement this and how a Customs and Other Government Agencies will want to influence (if they should at all?).

The WCO professes the CTS to be a complete, efficient, and effective solution. Based on this scorecard I’d say that’s a bit of an exaggeration and taken from the UNCTAD ASYCUDA Playbook discussed in Part 1 of the WCO CTS Myth.

They further describe it as user-friendly, simple, powerful, affordable, and sustainable. They say everything is required to implement and sustain an effective cargo manifest risk assessment solution. Like a technology vendor, they state they will provide the hardware, data assistance, training, support, maintenance. The WCO is suddenly discovering that software development can be difficult. As one example, they’ve only obtained 40% of the cargo data in some countries. That goes a long way from the full visibility needed at the border. (Maybe goods aren’t being smuggled in the other 60%?) ....

Why do some country members of the WTO and WCO focus so acutely on valuation threats as their primary concern for revenue evasion, and why do they perceive a valuation database as the solution to detecting possible undervaluation attempts at the border?

Alibaba’s Jack Ma was named UNCTAD’s Special Adviser on trade this week. Mr. Ma was quoted as follows; "It is an honor to serve as UNCTAD’s Special Adviser on Youth Entrepreneurship and Small Business," said Mr. Ma. "I have spent my career working with entrepreneurs and know the positive social and economic impact when people are given the opportunity to participate in the global economy."

Mr. Ma, we have a problem. UNCTAD is actually preventing my fellow entrepreneurs, start-ups, and technology firms (who build solutions for border processing and trade facilitation) from the opportunity to participate. In short, they have created a barrier to market entry. The playing field is not level.